"He gave my life back to me."
Patty suffered a severe knee and leg injury in 1990 after an inmate at the prison where she worked hit her.
"The inmate hit me, and when she hit me, it just took me knee and basically crushed it," says Patty, who was 32 at the time. "The way she hit me, it knocked my foot to a 20-degree valgus, which knocked my foot way out. I was walking like a duck."
After the injury, she saw orthopaedic surgeon Ronald Disimone, MD, who was new to north central Pennsylvania at the time. Dr. Disimone performed a procedure to bring her foot back into alignment and a femoral osteotomy.
Those surgeries marked the beginning of a strong patient-doctor relationship. Over the years, Dr. Disimone has performed several surgeries on Patty — including three total knee replacements, multiple hip surgeries, a shoulder procedure, and more.
"He'd probably tell you he'd like to get rid of me," Patty jokes. "We've been through thick and thin."
Patty says she appreciates Dr. Disimone's diligence and his bedside manner.
"I would send anybody to him," she says. "He takes time with you, and that's what I like."
Before her initial injury, she, her husband, and their two children went on camping trips, hiked, visited amusement parks, and more. After her injury, she says she was "laid up for a good three years" and couldn't put weight on her leg.
The surgeries that Dr. Disimone performed helped her to once again lead an active life.
"He gave my life back to me," she says.
Now 65, Patty's last knee replacement surgery happened about 15 years ago. While she can't do everything she used to, she still lives an active life. She and her husband — who also is a patient of Dr. Disimone's — go on cruises and take other trips together. They also enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren.
Patty also enjoys being able to do work around the house. For that, she thanks Dr. Disimone.
"Even now that I'm 65 years old, I'm still walking," she says. "I've had so much done, but I'm still walking. I might walk with a walker, but I'm still walking. It's because of him that I walk, and he allows me to get my stuff done.
“Maybe I'm not perfect, but I'm still walking, and I'm still going. And that means a lot to me."
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